Rasps and wood shaping...

[nimmaj]

Hello,

Several of my mates have just started having kids - i thought i'd make the kids names out of letters. I've found some nice purpleheart to start with. Each letter will be about 9cmx7cmx2cm. Ish. My plan is to saw out the waste to a square cross section and then round over the edges to make a nice 3d letter.

If i'm going to heavily round over the edges, i presume i need to go and invest in a rasp or two?

If the answer to that is yes, what do people think about auriou rasps versus much cheaper ones? Are rasps like planes and you're much better off investing in a good one early on?

I was also wondering whether purpleheart would wear out a rasp quickly? It seems very hard indeed! Slightly worried that i'll get a nice auriou rasp and trash it immediately!

Everything i've read seems to indicate that a small auriou modelling rasp might be perfect for the job.

All thoughts appreciated!

Ben

 

[DaveL]

Hi Ben,

I have a few auriou rasps, bought some year ago, they are a wonderful tool. Used with care they produce a good finish and while I have not used them for lots of work they are as sharp now as when they were new.
The down side is the price, but I also have some cheap rasps. While the cheap ones cut well they do not produce such a good finish, they are OK for roughing stuff out but I always go back to the auriou for the final cuts before using the sand paper on the job.
The reason the auriou produce such a good finish is the hand stitching used to make the cutting teeth. This means the teeth are not in perfect lines in perfect rows, giving a much smoother cut across the blade. 8)

 

[wizer]

Ariou rasps are a joy to use. I've played with them at the shows. But I'm not sure I could justify the expense when my cheap Lidl rasps do a very good job.

 

[OPJ]

I've been playing with some Auriou rasps since January and, as said, they are lovely tools to use. Having not used any cheaper rasps, I I can't comment on how they compare. But, they seem to hold their 'edge' very well and, as Dave mentions, the finish is very good with the finer grades.

If you can afford them :shock:, I'd certainly advise you to go for them. I think you'd need to be using them on a very regular basis to be able to justify the initial cost now. :?

 

[Harbo]

I have a few Aurious, a few from Dick and some from Workshop Heaven and one from Tools for Making Wood.
The Aurious are certainly the best, closely followed by TFWW.
The Aurious cut so fast that you find you can managed with the finer grade ones which have the advantage of leaving a smoother and finer finish.
My last Auriou I purchased was a 15 grade and that still cuts very fast.
I bought mine a few years ago when the prices were not so eye watering but you will not be disappointed with them if you purchase some - they make rasping a joy.
The one TFWW I have is their Saw Handle Makers one which performs very well. They have the advantage of being made from stainless steel and are slightly cheaper.

Rod

 

[Paul Chapman]

If you want to save yourself some money, you could try doing the initial shaping with a cheapo rasp and then finish off with a card scraper (which is also not expensive). That's how I shaped this walking stick handle, which was made from Ebony - much harder than Purpleheart but the scraper cut very well on it

Hope this helps.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[nimmaj]

All very helpful - thanks guys!

Ben

 

[woodbloke]

A much cheaper alternative for a hand stitched rasp are the Chinese ones from Workshop Heaven. I have a set and they're very good indeed, and ever better is that they're a quarter the price of the A ones :wink: - Rob

 

[nimmaj]

Hmm - that's tempting. I've got to order some wood for my grandfather's 88th birthday from workshopheaven, too. Interesting - thanks for the info, Rob.

Paul - interesting about the approach you used for ebony. I guess i should try scraping at some stage, too! Love the handle, btw.

Rod - that saw handle one from tfww looks really interesting as i'm going to have to do the inside of some letters, too. Unfortunately they're out of stock at the moment.

Thanks again...

Ben

 

[Harbo]

Ben - be mindful of the grades you choose - I would tend towards the finer ones.

You get what you pay for - The Workshop Heaven (unless WH have changed their range since I bought mine?) ones are good, but even their finest was a lot coarser than the A's and they still cut much slower.
There is a big price difference though!

I will try and take some photos if you like, but using them is only the real way to tell?

Rod

 

[OPJ]

I agree with the comments on using the finer grades of rasp. I've got a couple of coarse Auriou's and they really eat away at the timber (brown oak) - I'd say they're more efficient than a large bobbin sander..! :shock: But, you're more likely to get breakout at the edges - not a problem with the finer rasps, which still remove a good amount of material and don't appear to clog or lose their 'edge'.

I would be interested to hear how you get on with the Chinese rasps though. Hand-stitching definitely makes a big difference.

 

[Harbo]

Here's some photos:

Left to Right: 3 Aurios, 3 Workshop Heavens, 1 TFWW, 2 Dick, 1 Nicholson

3 A's; 12, 13, 15g

3 WSH's: nos. 5, 6, 7

1 TFWW Saw makers, 2 Dick no.7 & Schnhorst??

All close ups taken from same distance.

Hope it helps? I started off with the the Dicks, then bought the WSH's, bought the No.12 Auriou to get a finer cut - was bowled over by it and bought the other two, going finer and finer!


Rod

 

[nimmaj]

V interesting about the grades and hand stitching - thanks for that.

The pictures are really useful, too, Rod - thanks for those!

Think i'm tempted to get one of each and have a play!

Cheers,

Ben